I have 3 brooders and I'm getting baby chicks...

I have 3 brooders and I'm getting baby day old chicks at the end of this month. How do you go about putting day old chicks under brooders? Do you feed and water the chicks first upon arrival and then place them in the care of the brooders?

And what time of day would be best to place them under the brooding hen? Night, Morning, doesn't matter?

Any and all information will be greatly appreciated. This is my first spring with grown hens and my first brooders. They have been brooding for 3 to 4 weeks now, and I wasn't worried about it (the loss in production) but it dawned on me that I could place some of the baby chicks under these brooders. I'm getting about 24 chicks, so I know I won't be able to place all them just under 3 hens, but a good number to each chicken would also help me out too. thanks in advance.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sumi 

Your hens would be able to take care of 8 chicks each. No problem! A guy I know went a bit crazy with his broodies, one hen ended up with 18 chicks. She managed. Just!

A newborn chick won't need food or water for the first 2-3 days, but since you won't know exactly when they were born I'd say offer them some chick starter and water. The best time to put them under the hens is at night. Then the hens are relaxed and sleepy and they'll be happy to find chicks in the morning.

Enjoy your babies!

That's wonderful new! 8 chicks a piece then I won't have to brooder them. I feed my flock Starter/grower right now. About 7 and 10 weeks ago I got chicks, and now they are all with the flock. So I have 25 adult chickens, 8 ten week old chicks, and 24 seven week old chicks. I shouldn't have any problem if these baby chicks are with there surrogate mothers right?

Okay, thanks everybody. If I do put them with the brooders they will be with the whole flock. The whole point of even thinking about doing this, is to remove the hassle of extra work and space. I have a brooder, but I won't be able to separate 3 momas with babies from everybody else. It would be easier just to put them in the brooder. But I guess I can put them with the brooders and if they don't guard them well enough or others take extremes to peck I can always remove them from moma and put them in my brooder.

My 3 brooders are a White Jersey Giant, a Black Star, and a leghorn mix. I might have another coming into brood. She's clucking like my brooders. (Which I noticed is totally different from their normal clucks). I checked my order again and my exact number is 23, so I will give the leghorn 7 and the others 8 a piece. I just hope they don't through in extra, then I'll have to brooder some regardless.

No, not really. See I have a 6X12 room in my coop, and that's were I keep my feed, pine shaving, and brooder, and I've cleaned out a space for raising baby chicks this spring when the grow out of the brooder until they are 6-8 weeks old, before I introduce them to my flock. The wall is made of chicken wire, so they can see each other and interact, but not hurt the young ones. Its just dirt floor. My whole coop is dirt floor. The babies make a real mess in that part and its hard keeping them confine to that space because basically I barricade that part off with pine shaving blocks.

If I had to separate the mothers, I would just raise the babies in the brooder and them put them in that space until they are 6-8 weeks old and then put them with the big ones. I'm trying to eliminate the need of using this space, that I really need for storage. Right now, I have everything crammed in half of that 6X12 space.

But that's why I put this question on here, because I need to know if its alright to put these babies with the brooders, with the whole flock or should I just go ahead and brooder them myself and do the whole process I've done 3 times already. I just figured it would also get the hens over their need to brood too.  

Quote:

Originally Posted by StormyMoon 

Is it possible to just section off part of their coop ?